Cybils, Round Two

Fun news! The round-two panel for the Science Fiction/Fantasy category in the Cybils Book Awards just got split in two: elementary/middle-grade, and young adult. I (Ashley) will have the privilege of judging the elementary/middle-grade subsection of this awesome category. And I'm so excited! I've looked over the list of nominees, and I can't wait to see what short list the first round of judges comes up with. I might just pick a few myself and start reading now. There's a good number I've read already. Guess I'm in the right place! If you're interested in this particular category, check out the list here.

In other news, I finally finished Once a Witch. Yes, finally. It took me a long time to read, because I was quite unengaged by it. The main character was somewhat sympathetic, but mostly kind of whiny. (In my opinion.) She smoked and drank (at age 17) like it was a character trait, not a character flaw, which bothered me. Call me conservative. And there was far too much whispering in general. Made for an overexaggerated sense of drama. Also some unanswered questions that were generally confusing. The jacket made it sound like my kind of book, but unfortunately, it wasn't. Oh well. On to the next!